Addicted (M)

Chapter 8: Unseen Forces

Avery's breath caught in her throat as she stared across the table at Jadin. The air in the room seemed to thicken, the faint buzz of the fluorescent lights suddenly more oppressive. The hum wasn't just an auditory illusion. It was physical. Electric. Her skin tingled, as if every cell in her body was reacting to something in the air. Something coming from him.

Jadin's expression hadn't changed. He was still leaning forward, his intense gaze never wavering from hers. But there was something behind his eyes now—something far darker than what she had seen before. Something that made her blood run cold.

"I've been wondering how long it would take before you figured it out," Jadin murmured, his voice smooth, almost hypnotic. "You're not like the others, Dr. Weaver. You don't just take what I say at face value. But you'll learn soon enough. You'll see."

Avery's pulse quickened. The room seemed to pulse with a strange energy, like the very walls were charged. She fought the urge to pull away, to leave the room and get to safety. But she stayed rooted to her chair, unwilling to let him get away with whatever this was.

"You're telling me there's more to this than what you've said?" she asked, her voice barely steady. "More to what happened with your mother? More than just a confession?"

Jadin's lips twitched into a smile, the corners of his mouth curling up in a way that made the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. "It's not about what happened, Dr. Weaver. It's about what happens when it happens again."

Avery's mind raced, but she couldn't shake the sense that he wasn't speaking in riddles. He was speaking the truth—his truth. But what was it? What was he warning her about?

Her thoughts were interrupted by a sharp crackle of static in the air, as if a surge of electricity had just coursed through the room. The lights flickered violently, the overhead bulbs sputtering. She looked up, her heart racing.

"What is that?" she asked, her voice low, her eyes scanning the room.

Jadin's gaze was fixed on her, unblinking. "It's happening already," he whispered.

The air around them seemed to warp. The hum intensified, so much so that it felt like a tangible force pressing in on her, threatening to suffocate her. Avery's hand trembled, her fingers gripping the edge of the table as she leaned forward, trying to maintain her composure.

"Jadin, what are you—"

Before she could finish her question, there was a loud snap and the entire room seemed to shake. The lights overhead shattered in an explosion of sparks, showering the floor with bits of glass. Avery jumped back instinctively, her heart pounding in her chest.

And then, everything went still.

The air was heavy, thick with static. Avery could feel it in her chest, her heartbeat syncing with the strange rhythm of the energy in the room. She could see the way Jadin's eyes were glowing faintly, a pale blue light reflecting in them, as though the very essence of the power around them was somehow emanating from him.

She stood up quickly, her mind spinning. "What are you doing, Jadin?"

Jadin didn't move. He remained seated, his gaze still locked onto hers. But his lips curled into something that was almost... satisfied. "I told you," he said softly, almost lovingly. "This is just the beginning. It's all connected, Dr. Weaver. The power... it's inside me. And it won't be contained for long."

Avery's head was spinning. There was no logical explanation for what she had just witnessed. No psychiatric theory or textbook that could account for the energy that had flooded the room. Her breath was shallow, her thoughts scattered as she struggled to make sense of it all.

"I've seen things," she said quietly, her voice barely a whisper. "Things that shouldn't be possible. There were marks... on your mother's body. Electrical burns. And I thought they were just—just anomalies. But now..." She trailed off, her eyes searching his face, desperate for some explanation that made sense.

Jadin's smile grew wider, but his expression was hard, almost cruel now. "You really don't understand, do you? This is me. This power... it's what's inside of me. It's what I've always had. What I can't escape."

Avery felt her stomach churn. The room was suffocating. She needed air. She needed space.

"Jadin, stop," she said, her voice trembling as she took a step back. "You're telling me you didn't cause the death of your mother? That you didn't—"

"I didn't kill her," he interrupted, his voice low, dangerous. "But I was there. I'm always there. Every time it happens. I don't control it. It controls me."

The room seemed to grow colder, despite the heat of the chaos still pulsing in the air. Avery was struggling to keep her thoughts from unraveling. She couldn't—couldn't—believe what he was saying. But the evidence was right in front of her. The marks on his mother's body. The electrical surges. The strange occurrences that had followed Jadin wherever he went.

"What are you saying?" she whispered. "That you're... what? Some kind of... weapon?"

Jadin finally stood, his movements slow but deliberate, as if every step was calculated. He came around the table toward her, his presence overwhelming. She backed up instinctively, but the wall was behind her now. She had nowhere to go.

"I'm not a weapon, Dr. Weaver," Jadin said softly, his voice suddenly so close she could feel the heat of it on her skin. "But you're getting closer to the truth. And when you do... when you understand what I really am, you won't want to be near me anymore."

Avery's breath hitched in her throat as she stared into his eyes. There was something ancient in them, something primal and terrifying. And then, with a sudden surge of motion, he was gone. He turned, his footsteps fading as he retreated to the back of his cell.

The lights flickered back on, their harsh brightness stinging her eyes.

Avery stood frozen for a moment, trying to calm the pounding of her heart, trying to make sense of everything she had just heard. She couldn't stay here. Not now, not after everything he had just told her.

With one last glance at Jadin's retreating figure, Avery turned and fled the room, the door slamming shut behind her.

Her mind was reeling. She didn't know if she could stop whatever was coming. But the one thing she did know—without a doubt—was that she was now entangled in something far darker than she had ever imagined.